The Purdue Cancer Center was established in 1978 as an NCI-designated basic Cancer Center. The Center capitalizes on Purdue's nationally recognized strengths in the chemical and biological sciences to focus institutional expertise on the cancer problem. The interface between chemistry and biology is exploited in the interprogrammatic collaborations that the Center fosters, and this represents a fundamental and unique strength of this Cancer Center. The Center's three scientific programs integrate chemical design and synthesis, protein structural analysis and molecular mechanisms of cell growth to form a network of collaborative science that crosses multiple disciplines. This synergism derives from the Center's focus on interdisciplinary research as the key to progress in controlling cancer. Emphasis in the Experimental Therapeutics and Diagnostic (ETD) program is on the creation of new chemical entities to improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Scientists in the Structural Biology (SB) program provide the structural framework for the rational design of future therapeutics and delivery vehicles, while investigators in the Cell Growth and Differentiation (CGD) program discover and characterize molecules and cellular processes for use as novel cancer targets. In addition to its scientific programs, the Center fosters fundamental cancer research through four Center-sponsored focus groups, a Small Grants Program, and annual retreats and seminar programs. The three scientific programs are served by seven shared resources that are supported in part by the Cancer Center Support Grant: Analytical Cytology; DNA Sequencing; Drug Discovery: Macromolecular Crystallography; Mass Spectrometry; Nuclear Magnetic Resonance; and Transgenic Mouse. The Cancer Center Support Grant also provides funds for the strategic recruitment of new cancer-focused investigators to the Center, for planning and evaluation, and for administration and organization of the Center.